Change is Inevitable
by YourGuardianAngel08
Summary: Takes place after Infinity War - some SPOILERS (I think) The relationships between the Avengers will change when they save the others from Thanos, it is guaranteed. That goes for Peter and Tony as well. When Peter is badly injured in a fight, Tony does not react as rationally as he would have before the kid's return. A bit of drabble of what that would look like. Dad!Tony.


**Okay so this is me attempting to deal with Infinity War without being able to come up with a solution to bring everyone back that would come close to what the writers will come up with. This little piece of drabble takes place after the return of the dusted Avengers and its my take on Peter and Tony's relationship. The way I see it, the dynamic is going to have to change a bit, you don't see someone you feel responsible for disappear and not have a jarring response to that. So this is what happens when they are fighting and Peter gets injured. Takes place very soon after the Avengers return to New York.**

 **I hope you like it and I hope its not too OOC for either of them.**

 **Have a wonderful day!**

 **-Lily  
**

* * *

"Mr. Stark!" Peter's spider sense tingled at the back of his mind as he turned with just enough time yell a warning but not enough time for the target to react. Peter watched one of the creatures clamp its jaws around Iron Man's arm and snapped its head to the side, dragging the suit with it. Once it had the suit in its jaws, the beast slammed the armor into the concrete of the sidewalk with enough force to leave a small crater where it had hit. Then the beast dragged the armor up again before wrenching its neck sideways and releasing the suit at the apex of the arc. As soon as the creature released the suit, Peter webbed after it. He kept his eyes glued to the slowly falling suit, heart in his throat when he realized the thrusters still had yet to come back online. Just as he caught up, Mr. Stark seemed to wake up or something because he managed to stop his own decent.

It took Tony a minute to get his bearings, that beast had done a number on his suit. Easily puncturing multiple systems necessary for its function and while he knew the nanobots would take care of it, he was not sure how fast. So when he felt himself launched through the air, he said his prayers that the bots worked faster than it took to fall. It took longer than he would have liked but bleeding edge did its job before he hit the ground. Firing up the repulsors enough to get back into the fight he caught a glimpse of a spider in the corner of his vision.

He could not help smiling when he saw him, "Were you coming to get me?"

If he could see him, he knew Peter would have a sheepish look on his face, as it was, he could hear it in his voice, "I didn't want you to hit the ground, I couldn't tell what damage that thing had done to the suit."

Tony wished he could take the mask off but there was not time now, "Thanks, kid." Then he took off, back into the fray. Looking back, he saw Peter do the same. But he could not help the slight twist in his stomach that came with wishing Peter was just about anywhere else.

* * *

The fighting continued back and forth as the beasts were slowly brought under control. It was more difficult than they had initially assumed. They were all still exhausted and drained from the battle with Thanos, but on the plus side it meant most of the Avengers were the same place at the same time. Something Tony was immensely thankful for because without their full might, these beasts would have wreaked more havoc than they already had. The portalled beasts were tough but stupid, their danger, as he had rudely found out earlier, was that their mouth secreted some kind of acid. Even the nanobots were having trouble shoring up the damaged the teeth had done to the arm and back of the suit and Tony was still trying to ignore the damage done to the muscle of his arm where the teeth had penetrated the armor.

Thankfully, he had found out that the respulsors on high power worked well enough to cut through the tough hide of the beast but it was a slow process. Most of his and Rhodey's weapons barely pierced their hide and it was melee weapons that were doing the brunt of the damage. Thor was having a field day with his ax and even Hulk seemed a bit more confident as he bashed in the brains of some of the creatures.

Finishing cutting the legs out from under one of the beasts, Tony turned to work on its head when a warning blared through his mask and he looked up in time to barely dodge a massive claw that passed just a few feet above his head. He followed the arm with every intention of taking it off when he saw it slam into Peter before wrapping around his leg.

"Pete!" Tony screamed as he watched the giant scaled beast swung the kid over its head and keep ahold of him as he battered him into the ground with enough force to crack and depress the asphalt. FRIDAY focused Tony's mask on him and while Spider-man was still moving, it was sluggish. As the beast raised a clawed fist seemingly intent on smashing the spider, Tony knew there was no way the kid would be able to move quick enough to get away. Turning the thrusters to the ground, and calling for all the power he could get, he grit his teeth and rocketed toward them.

Unable to stop the claw, he quickly turned to the concrete, barely managing to slide between the beast's quickly falling hand and the teenager imbedded in the ground, Tony braced himself on all fours, as the appendage slammed down into the back of his suit, its intention clear as the arm forced Tony closer to the slowly moving spider. "Stay down kid!" Tony yelled through their com system. The suit groaned with the effort of keeping the claw from crushing the two of them and Tony could feel his arms and legs start to burn with the effort of stopping the creature from finishing its mission. Thankfully, Peter seemed to listen to him and stopped trying to struggle away.

Then FRIDAY's soft voice filled the helmet, "Sir, we are close to losing integrity in the left forearm of the suit." Tony squashed the panic that rose in the back of his throat, that was the portion that had taken damage from the creature's acidic bite.

Realizing he would need to do something soon, Tony used everything he could to press back against the claw, actively trying to free the both of them but he heard the creature growl with renewed effort and the suit groaned again as the weight increased. They needed backup. He called out over the coms, his voice strained to his own ears, "I need some help over here."

"Where are you?" Steve was the first to respond.

He could barely talk through his gritted teeth, his arm was really starting to burn, "Near the where the portal dropped these things on us."

"We'll be over as soon as we can." The Captain's voice was calm and focused on whatever he was doing but Tony needed it focused somewhere else.

Tony felt himself moving closer toward the concrete against his own volition, the monster was getting the upper hand, the suit protesting and FRIDAY giving it a voice, "Sir, the suit's been…"

Tony cut her off, "I know." Realizing he was not going to be able to wait until they finished what there were doing, Tony told them the one thing that would get them there faster, "I need you here now. The kid's hurt and I can't hold this thing off much longer."

The silence on the coms was deafening as Tony listened anxiously, only the sound of creaking metal and FRIDAY's voice filling his ears. Then he heard what he had been waiting for,

"Incoming. Two seconds." Rhodey answered.

Then the sky above Tony exploded. He could see a bit from his vantage point under the claw but when the pressure on the suit suddenly released, he took one look at the monster before turning his attention to the kid. At some point, he had stopped moving around, either because he realized what was happening or because he passed out, Tony refused to think of a third reason.

"FRIDAY, talk to Karen, find out what's going on."

There was a brief pause before Karen's voice flooded his helmet, "Peter has a severe concussion sir, multiple bruised ribs," the A.I. paused as she scanned, "correction multiple broken ribs, a fractured right arm, broken right leg, some damage to his back, although I am unable to ascertain what, and multiple slash marks that penetrated the suit. His body and suit are attempting to heal some of the damage but the number of injuries is making it difficult."

As Tony was trying to make something of the information, he heard the other Avengers arrive at his side. Looking up, mask still stubbornly in place to hide the tears he could feel pricking at the corners of his eyes, Tony watched them make a physical wall around him and Peter.

Then Natasha's voice came over the coms, "How is he?"

Tony had to choke back a sob, as he answered, "Not good." The response was not long enough for his voice to break but he knew if he said more it would. He swallowed hard and continued, "We need to get him out of here. He needs help."

They were all still on edge. Having someone they just gotten back badly injured was jarring to all of them, and it was obvious when Rhodey answered quickly and with a little too much authority, "Take him. Come back if you can but get him to safety."

Then Tony came up with a solution, "Strange." He called back over the coms, "I need you to come to me. I need help getting Peter back to the compound. I'm afraid to move him."

Without a word, the former trauma surgeon appeared before him, stepping out of his orange portal. The man took one look at the boy crushed into the black asphalt and concrete of the road and began to create another portal under him. Tony recognized the backdrop, it was one of the medical beds of the Avengers facility. Peter would not need to go far to get help. Before the portal opened wide enough though, Strange looked at Tony, "I need you to wait. I will go with him and I will help him but you must stay and help defeat these creatures. If you leave the now, many more could be injured."

Tony started to protest but snapped his mouth shut as the portal below the kid started to close and Strange spoke again, "This is not a negotiation. I am telling you what will happen. I will save him or I will leave him here. That is your choice."

Tony felt the hot burn of anger claw its way up the back of his throat, displacing the fear that had been lingering there, this bastard was willing to play with his kid's life just to keep Iron Man in the fight? However, something in Strange's eyes told Tony that he needed to acquiesce now because not doing so would prove dangerous.

Swallowing his anger, fear, and a little pride, he growled an answer, "Go."

Strange gave a curt nod before opening up the portal below Peter, following him a moment later, giving an apologetic nod to Tony before he did so.

Rage flooded Tony's system after they had disappeared. He forced his eyes closed and took a deep breath to steady his shaking hands. When he opened them again he was more focused but no less angry. Ignoring the voices in his helmet, worried voices asking if he was alright, he told FRIDAY to locate the closest creature. Standing suddenly, he rocketed off toward the beast, leaving the rest of his team behind.

As soon as he saw it, tearing through buildings, tossing cars aside as if they were nothing more than wooden props, he turned the full force of his ire on this creature because at this point it was this creature keeping him from his kid. Ignoring the voice in the back of his mind that told him it was never a good idea to fight while angry, Tony vowed to himself that this would be a short battle.

* * *

It took a few more hours to finally kill all of them. And as the slaughter continued, Tony could feel the rage boiling just under his skin because no matter how much anger Tony poured into the fight, the beasts continued to live. Every minute that passed made him more impatient, more irrational. After he had snapped at Cap for pulling him back away from a charging creature, even the rest of the Avengers had stopped talking to him through the coms. He realized this was a stupid way to fight, knew that when he looked back on it he would have to be thankful he did not get anyone killed, but he could not summon the will to care. The only thing that mattered was getting it done and getting to Peter, that was it. So he pushed ahead, he slammed his fist into anything that was moving and nearly destroyed his suit faster than the nanobots could repair it. It was stupid but it made him feel slightly better.

As the last creature bellowed its dying cries, everything finally stopped. Slowly, they all gathered in the square near where the creatures had appeared and as each member stepped into view the others made sure they were they were alright. Even Tony stayed for that brief moment, he was impatient but he still wanted to make sure everyone else made it. As soon as Clint and Natasha stepped out of the smoke and into view, the group took a collective breath, that was interrupted as Bleeding Edge powered back up. As he hovered over the assembled group, Tony called up the group's coms, "The quinjet is ready to go a street over. I'm heading back now." Without waiting for any confirmation, Tony turned and sped off toward the complex.

In response, Rhodey fired up War Machine, "I'm gonna go with him. Get back as soon as you can." He took off after Tony.

The rest of the haggard Avengers just looked at each other, they knew why Tony had left, they had all heard the same message come over the coms but no one was really sure what to make of Rhodes remark. Still when Cap shrugged and took off toward the quinjet, everyone else followed. They were wheels up in five minutes.

As soon as he was in the front door, he bolted to the medical wing. He stopped just short of running into the first person he saw in the hallway. She jumped as he came to a stop in front of her, "Mr. Stark?"

He managed to pull in enough of a breath to demand, "Where is he?" But it was not nearly as forceful as he had hoped.

"Who?"

"The kid. Peter. He came in with Strange, where is he?"

"I'm not sure, was he brought into the medical wing?"

Tony just nodded.

"I know they took someone into surgery but I'm afraid I don't know if they are out of the theater yet."

Tony's legs suddenly took on the feeling of jelly and he barely caught himself as he started to sink toward the ground. It was as if everything smacked into him at once and pain suddenly flared up across his body.

The woman seemed to suddenly appear at his side. "Mr. Stark, I think you need to sit down." She said softly as she guided him to a chair.

Taking her advice, he slumped into the chair and let his head fall back against the wall with an audible thud. It was not intentional but the pain sharpened his senses a bit and he was able to focus on keeping the tears at bay. He did not see the woman, whose name he still did not know, starting to look him over, until she started talking.

"Mr. Stark, your arm is bleeding pretty badly, you need to someone to see to that."

He just nodded, "Fine. But you need to find out about the kid they took into surgery."  
She bobbed her head quickly agreeing before running down the hallway.

"Wait," Tony called, "What's your name?"

"Karen." She yelled back before doing what he had asked her to do.

"Of course." Tony hummed to himself before closing his eyes again and whispering, "Where are you, Pete?"

That was where Rhodes found him a few minutes later.

"You look like shit."

Without even opening his eyes, Tony scoffed at the greeting, "Yah well, if I didn't have a kid who was constantly getting himself into trouble I wouldn't look half this bad." He felt the weight of his friend plop into the chair next to him before throwing his arm around his shoulder.

"Yah but then we wouldn't have a spider."

For whatever reason Tony scoffed at that before he opened his eyes and looked at his friend, "I don't even know if he's alright, Rhodey. They haven't said anything yet."

"He'll be alright Tony. He's a tough kid."

As if on cue, Karen came back with a nurse and med kit in tow.

"Mr. Stark, this is Izzy, she'll take care of the wound on your arm."

Without orders, Tony lifted his arm so the woman could look at it and she prodded it a few times before explaining, "This might need a few stitches, Mr. Stark."

He could not explain why but the fact that both of them kept calling him Mr. Stark was starting to grate, which is probably why he ground out, "Call me Tony" while the woman poked at his arm.

While Izzy did her thing with the poking and sewing, Karen called his attention, "Mr. St – Tony," she corrected when he glared at her, "I found out where they took the patient, Peter. He's still in the surgical theater but one of the nurses on the floor said they were finishing up now and he should be in a room in the next half an hour or so."

Tony coughed to cover a sob at what she had said, "Do you know if it went alright?"

"Unfortunately sir, he wasn't able to give me an update, just a location."

"Okay, thank you, Karen."

"You're welcome Tony." She smiled at him before going back to whatever she was doing before.

It did not take much longer for Izzy to finish up either, "You'll want to take it easy for a few days, Mr. Stark but other than that, your arm should heal fine."

"Please call me Tony." The demand was a bit more pitiful, he could hear it in his voice but he just could not be Mr. Stark anymore right now.

"Of course. Sorry, Tony." She packed up her med kit and disappeared as well, leaving Tony and Rhodes sitting alone in the hallway.

They sat in silence for a few minutes but then Rhodes broke it, "I know what you're thinking and there is no way this is even remotely close to your fault."

Tony did not even try to argue, did not have the strength for it. He just felt drained, which is exactly why he could not stop the next sentence out of his mouth, "I just got him back Rhodey." Dropping his head into his hands, Tony sighed, expelling every terrible thing he could.

"I know." And that arm around his shoulders was back even as Rhodes touched his finger to his ear. Listening to the message he gripped Tony's shoulder before relaying it, "Everyone's back. They're on their way up here."

Stark did not response, just bobbed his head a few times where it sat between his hands.

* * *

The med bay was usually the first stop for any of them after a mission but the normal protesting that went with it was not present as the rest of the Avengers stepped into the hallway. They were all variations of bloody and each of them would be seen to eventually but no one was willing to move away from where Tony and Rhodes sat. No one said anything, just took up chairs and waited for what they assumed was news on their youngest member.

* * *

Tony did not know how long they waited but he could feel the anxiety building again in the pit of his stomach, he needed to know something soon or he was going to give in to the anger that was building alongside it. Then someone stepped out of one of the rooms down the hall. Tony heard the snap of the door and the chairs moving slightly as everyone turned to stand but he stayed seated, keeping his eyes closed for just a few more seconds. He did not know if he could see the doctor right now and he needed a bit more time to compose his frayed nerves. As the steps closed in, Tony finally stood and could not help the anger that flared as soon as he saw the wizard. He knew it was irrational, knew he should not be this angry but dammit, he could not help it. Taking a step forward, he was surprised when Bruce put a hand on his chest and pushed him back.

In a quiet voice, he ordered, "Don't, Tony. Not right now."

Surprisingly, he felt some of the anger drain, enough to keep him rooted to the spot but not enough to extinguish any anger toward Strange.

The former doctor stepped up in front of the exhausted group and with half a smile announced, "Peter will make a full recovery."

There was a collective sigh as if they were all able to take full breaths again, at least from most of the group, Tony still needed to _see_.

"Where is he?" His voice was much stronger than what he thought it would be but Strange expected that question.

"He'll be down the hall, they're moving him there now, you should be able to see him in about ten minutes." Then the wizard moved passed them, probably going to his room.

Tony took a step toward Strange, intending to follow him and yell at him for the nine minutes it would take to get Peter into his own room but Bruce's hand on his shoulder stopped him, "See to Peter first, Tony. Do not go after Strange right now."

"I won't hurt him." He growled, the hold Bruce had instilled was starting to crack, "Too much."

Banner's tone was deadly serious, "Tony, do not do this right now."

Stark turned his contained fury on Banner, needing him to understand, "He threatened him, Bruce." Then he took a more aggressive step forward, physically trying to move passed Banner.

Bruce pushed back against Tony's chest before he could move too far, "I know he did. Cap told me everything but if you go now, you're just going to hurt him and then you'll feel guilty afterward. Peter needs you more right now. Go see him and then you can talk to Strange. Let me talk to him first."

Tony wrestled down his rage and nodded an acquiescence. Bruce followed Strange.

Natasha stepped up, "Let's go check on the kid, Stark." She gently pushed him in the direction of the rooms, the rest of the Avengers moving with them.

* * *

Bruce knocked a few times, ready to make his case from the hallway if he had to but Strange hollered for him to enter so he pressed the door open, "Stephen, we need to talk."

Strange was not expecting the severity of Bruce's tone, if anything he would thought it would be a bit more celebratory, "About what?"

Bruce stepped farther into the room and closed the door behind him, "Stephen, that was a dangerous bargain to make."

Then it dawned on him what Banner wanted to talk about but he stood by his decision, "No it wasn't, I knew what choice Stark would make."

Bruce sighed and decided to be more blunt, he needed to make Strange understand, "I'm not talking about forcing him to make a decision. I'm talking about the way you said it, the way you made yourself into the villain when Peter is involved. I had to stop Tony from coming in here." Bruce scrubbed his hand over his face, trying to make the clearly unaffected man in front of him understand the damage he had done, "The only reason he did not was because Peter was in the other room."

Stephen could not figure out why Stark would be angry, so he laid out exactly why he should not be, "The boy will be fine. I understand Stark was angry with me at the time but I was able to repair most of the damage. He'll take longer to heal because of the extent of his injuries but I'm the one who made sure they were not fatal."

"Stephen he's not mad at you in the past tense, he is beyond pissed at you in the present!" Bruce was starting to lose his calm at the apparent ignorance from the genius doctor, "You threatened Peter, traded his life for an advantage in a fight we were already winning."

Strange was not affected by Bruce's outburst, continuing to use the calming, measured tone he always did, "We were not winning the fight at the time and taking out three fighters for the sake of saving one was not necessary. Stark was an asset we could not afford to lose. I knew what the outcome of the choice would be, I knew Tony would let me help him."

"Trust me when I tell you Tony will not see it that way. You stopped him from protecting Peter, you threatened his life." Bruce stood on his tiptoes to look Strange directly in the eye, "The anger I saw in the fight will be directed at you as soon as he proves to himself that Peter's going to live."

For whatever reason, that seemed to get through to the frustratingly calm doctor. He paused for a moment, the confident façade dropping for a split second before it was back and Strange responded, "Thank you for your candor but I believe I can handle Stark." Then he turned away from Banner, obviously done talking.

Bruce threw up his hands but did not say anything else as he turned to join the others in back in the med bay. As soon as he rounded the corner, he saw Tony, a look of pure, unadulterated fury in his eyes. Without any indication of whom he was talking about, he spat, "Where is he?"

Bruce was beyond attempting to keep him from Strange so he just threw up his hands and pointed in the direction of the room he had just stormed out of, maybe Stephen needed to see the outcome of his ultimatum.

* * *

As Tony rounded the corner, the source of his ire came into focus. Strange was standing with his back to the door and a hand to his head but Tony could not control the cold, burning anger that swelled in his chest again. Covering the ground between them at nearly a run Tony was on the good doctor before he had a chance to react. With only a few feet left, Tony yelled his name. When he turned around the fist Tony had cocked back, released and connected with Strange's face and Tony felt the cheekbone snap. As soon as the first hit broke bone, Tony's left hand followed a split second later, catching Stephen in the stomach. The man doubled at the waist caught off guard by the attack but as Tony readied another hit, Strange acted. That damnable portal appeared just below Stark's feet and his stomach dropped as his feet fell out from under him, only to be caught by the hot, dry sand of a desert.

Tony watched Strange lean over the portal, a feeling of pride washing over him as he realized the man's cheek was already swelling. As he started to speak, Tony discreetly hit a button on his watch, feeling the nanobots already working to activate thrusters under his feet.

"Stark, you have to understand, I would not have let the boy die. But that was the only wa-", Strange stopped talking and rolled back as Tony shot up through the portal, the thrusters doing their job perfectly.

"No!" He shouted as he landed, anger growing even hotter as Strange's only reaction was to close the portal. Tony started shouting, "You do not get to even begin to justify what you did back there." Tony stepped closer, his voice lowering to a menacing snarl as the nanobots continued to react intuitively, "You threatened the life of a sixteen year old, you threatened the life of a kid. My kid," he growled as he brought repulsor up to shoulder level, "and you expect me to understand that it was for the good of the group or some bullshit like that? There is no level of justification you can find to make me not want to kill you right now for that."

The weapon made Strange stumble and he finally showed some of the fear Tony was hoping to see. Putting his hands up in front of him in a placating gesture, Strange tried to reason with the man, "Stark, listen to me. I was not going to let anything happen to Peter. I just could not have you leaving because too many more people would have been injured." Stephen heard the whine of the repulsor as it charged but then a shout from outside the room stopped both of them.

"Tony!" Steve yelled as he tore into the room, finding the two in the middle of what he could only image from Strange's face was a fight. Still what he had to say was more important, "Tony, Peter's awake. He's asking for you."

Without hesitation, the hand that had been pointing, what Steve now realized was, a repulsor at Strange dropped and the owner took off out of the room. The Captain looked at the rattled surgeon, "You alright?"

Strange took a deep breath to slow his racing heart before responding, "Is he often like that?"

"Stubborn and distractible." Steve chuckled at his own joke.

But Strange was deadly serious, his gaze fixing on Steve's before he gave a different characterization, "Deranged and irrational."

Steve realized what he had walked in on and blamed his age for not realizing it sooner, "Only when people he cares about are involved. But in his defense, I heard the ultimatum you gave him, this time you deserved to see this side of Tony."

* * *

Tony bound down the hallway and skid into the room where Peter had been sleeping. Seeing the kid's eyes open and tracking his movements made him sob and seeing the kid smiling caused tears to prick at the corners of his eyes again.

"Hey Mr. Stark." Peter intoned with his characteristic, if unintentional, charm.

"Hey Pete." It was sentimental for a moment until he continued, "I'm glad you're alright but I swear if you ever do anything like that again, I will ground you permanently." However, if he had wanted Peter to take him seriously, he would not have flopped down in the chair closest to the bed. Although there was a passing thought as to why it was still open when most of the Avengers were in the room.

Peter's smile grew in response to Tony's terribly acted nonchalance.

The Avengers sat and chatted for a while, nothing important and nothing about the beasts, until Peter started to nod off. His eyes drooping from time to time and his words slurring as he tried to force himself to stay up. That was when Cap made the decision, "I think its time to let him get some sleep." Then he stood and laid his hand on Peter's hand, "Glad you're alright kid." The rest of the Avengers took his cue and started to file out of the room, until Tony was the only one left, still reclining in the chair.

Tony had to force himself to stand, he did not want to leave but knew Peter needed the sleep. He was just barely out of the chair when he heard Peter's quiet voice.

"Mr. Stark, will you stay with me?"

His eyes were so big and he looked so small in the bed that it nearly broke Tony's heart. But he must have paused for a little too long because Peter whispered "please" _._ It was enough to make Tony want to give the kid everything he had ever wanted and more than he could imagine but for right now, he would settle for this.

"Of course, Pete. I'm not going anywhere." And he settled back into the seat next to the bed, infinitely grateful that he had spent a bit more to get comfortable chairs.

The kid smiled before closing his eyes again and falling to sleep pretty quickly. Tony lowered the lights and shifted a bit to get comfortable himself. It was not long before the quiet, even breaths of the kid and the slow beeping of the machines lulled him to sleep too.

* * *

"No! Nononononono" Peter's shout woke Tony briefly but when the kid started to mumble, it began to drag Stark out of his exhausted sleep. It took him a second to remember where he was and what the sound of fabric rustling could possibly be until a tortured shout of "Tony!" jogged his memory. Tony's eyes popped open and he saw Peter flailing in the bed.

"Kid! Pete!" Tony lunged forward, grabbing hold of the kid's arms and trying to hold him still, worried he would hurt him further but knowing that Peter would do more damage to himself than Tony ever could. Unfortunately for Iron Man, without his suit, Peter was significantly stronger. Tony felt his feet lift off the ground as Peter managed to shove him hard with his good arm. He hit the wall awkwardly, forcing all the air out of his lungs and causing him to sputter but not draw a breath. He kept gasping but the first few draws missed the air until finally he was able to wheeze in a few particles. The whole time he struggled, he had to watch as Peter continued to thrash in the bed, gripped by whatever demons he was dealing with. But after what felt like ten minutes, Tony finally managed to draw in a lungful of air and he lurched back to the kid's side. Keeping from touching Peter's arms, Tony sat on the edge of the bed and put his hands on either side of Peter's face. Dodging his arms-turned-battering-rams, Tony tried to talk to him.

"Pete." He swallowed hard and spoke a little louder, "Peter, you need to calm down."

The words seemed to get through the haze because as Tony spoke, Peter calmed a bit. The response urged Tony on and the more he talked the quicker the kid calmed down. His swinging arms became sporadic movements but his chest heaved and tears fell as he continued to whisper "no" and "Tony" intermittently, turned his head in Tony's hands. When he finally stopped twisting, he leaned into Tony's hand, his tears wetting the man's fingers.

Tony left his hand where it was and used the other to comb through Peter's hair, speaking softly he tried to get through to the kid, "Pete, you need to wake up now." The longer Tony talked, the closer the boy came to consciousness and after a bit more coaxing he opened his tired eyes.

There was a flash of recognition and a broken whisper of "Tony…" before tears wracked his frame. Curling over his broken ribs, Peter slid out of Tony's hands and pulled his arms around his chest, irregularly sobbing and hiccupping before groaning in pain as the actions jostled his broken ribs.

Unsure of how to comfort him, Tony laid his hand on the kid's back, rubbing small circles and whispering nonsense in the way Pepper always did whenever he was having a nightmare. After a few minutes of the gentle ministrations, Peter uncurled and leaned into the arm on his back, twisting into Tony's hold and allowing his mentor the opportunity to wrap the kid in his arms. Tony obliged.

Peter's sobs deepened as he cried into Tony's chest, still murmuring the things he had been yelling in his sleep. He tightened his fingers into Tony's shirt, twisting the fabric and holding on for dear life as he tried to control his tears. He attempted to shrink into the grasp, to feel safe, and he managed to draw both his legs in, trying so hard to just become smaller.

Tony realized what he was doing and tried to help. He tugged him in close enough to rest his chin on the top of Peter's head, tightening his hold as soon as Peter was as close as he could physically get.

Peter did not look up at him again, just sobbed until he fell asleep in Tony's arms, exhausted from everything he had been through and finally feeling safe enough to actually sleep. Unwilling to pull the still clenched fingers from his shirt, Tony shifted them both into a reclining position so Peter could continue to sleep and Tony would not wrench his back sitting curled over the kid all night. He was not sure how it was possible but he managed to stretch them both out into a relatively comfortable position before maneuvering blankets to cover them, well really just to cover Peter. Job done, Tony pulled the kid close again, resting his chin back on his head, and letting the pain and fatigue of the day wash over him. Peter was alive, he was breathing, and Tony promised himself that would always be the case. He fell asleep listening to the soft breaths of his kid.

* * *

Something woke Stephen. He could not tell what it was but he was used to that at this point. Used to things he could not explain waking him in his sleep. Still, he found himself wandering the complex, unsure of where he was going.

His feet seemed to know the path though and eventually stood outside the medical wing. The majority of the lights were off save the lighting that ran along the baseboard, offering vision for those who needed to move through the wing while others were sleeping but something kept Stephen moving forward. Toward the room where he knew the kid was staying. Inwardly groaning to himself, he nearly thought to fight the course his feet had laid out but assumed there was something he was supposed to learn from whatever he was about to see so it might be worthwhile. What he saw was not what he anticipated although it probably should have been what he expected.

Peter was asleep on the bed as he should be but he was curled into Tony's chest. The boy's hand clenched the fabric of Stark's shirt and both Stark's arms were wrapped tightly around him. Both seemed to be sleeping peacefully. It was in that moment that Stephen truly understood the toll his choice had exacted. That relationship he had seen on Maw's ship. He had been partially right but Peter was not Tony's ward, he was his child. Not by blood, no Strange knew enough to know that Tony Stark did not have children but that does not stop one from being a father. Stephen had asked him to not only make a difficult choice about someone he cared about, he had stopped him from comforting that same person when he desperately needed it.

Flashes of the fight to save the boy's life invaded his mind. Peter had woken after Strange had gotten him back to the compound, shear terror reflected in his eyes as his head snapped back and forth looking for something. _Or someone_ , Stephen corrected himself. The kid had hissed in pain as Strange prodded at the wounds. But instead of watching him, Peter focused on the room around him, eyes never ceasing their search. Peter had stopped turning so much when they had moved him for x-rays and more shots but never did he call out, instead he kept his eyes moving, darting desperate for something to hold onto. It was only when they were putting him under to try to undo some of the damage that he had called out for Tony. It had been such a plaintive, meek cry that Stephen only remembered it now as he thought back on the moment. And by the time he had come out of surgery, the rest of the Avengers were back and Stephen felt satisfied at the job he had done, for him it had been time to move on. Not once did he think about what the kid must have been going through, the pain he had to be in the whole time while he looked for someone to ground him. That was what Tony was meant to be, that's why the man had wanted to go. Stephen had assumed it was to somehow assuage his own guilt in causing the kid's pain, he did not realize it was as much for Peter as it was for Tony.

He felt guilt claw its way into his throat and for once he regretted his actions, he knew it would not last because what he had done had saved civilian lives, but watching the absolute trust between the two and knowing he had denied that to them when they had both needed it, made him realize the wrongness of his callous delivery. Then another thought struck him. It might have actually been lucky that Peter had woken when he had because suddenly Stephen was not sure what Stark would have done if Steve, _correction Peter,_ had not called him away.

Blinking away the guilt fueled tears, Stephen turned to leave them in peace, he would apologize later but for now, he would let them sleep.

* * *

When Peter woke up it was like waking from a nightmare. There was an intense terror sitting on his chest that froze his lungs until his consciousness drifted back to him slowly. Then he felt the pain from his body seep in and he realized it was definitely not a dream. All the memories from the day before flooded his system, slamming into him in the same way that interdimensional beast had and he could feel panic replacing the terror in his chest. The tightness threatened to strangle him but then the rest of his body finally woke up and he felt…comfortable. He was not being ground into the street anymore and he definitely was not dead. That recognition helped to beat down the panic a bit but only until he realized it was difficult for him to move his arms. Some small part of his brain yelled at him to open his eyes before he jumped to any conclusions and he managed to listen. Blinking them open, the first thing he saw was a glowing arc reactor near his face. That caught him off guard until he looked down and realized he could not move his arms because someone was holding him. The molasses that was currently his brain did not put the two clues together until he looked up at the sleeping face of Mr. Stark. Flashes of memories from the night before threatened to invade his mind but he did not have the strength to acknowledge them. He knew he would have to, knew there was something that had caused him to react the way he had but the emotional pain was too fresh and the physical pain was starting to flare up so instead he pushed it to the back of his mind and snuggled closer to safety. He was keenly aware this was unorthodox but did not care in the slightest because he selfishly wanted to hold onto this feeling of security for as long as he could before he was forced to contend with the things that terrified him. He was sixteen, no one could blame him for that. So instead, he buried his face in his dad's shoulder and fell back to sleep content in the fact that if nothing else went right, Tony was still there.

* * *

Tony woke up feeling better than he had in a long time, sure his back was a bit stiff and his arms had not quite caught up to his awake-ness but he had actually managed to sleep pretty restfully, so that was something. That's when the realization that his arms were asleep caught his attention. Slowly peeling his eyes open he looked down and it dawned on him why they were numb. Well not so much dawned as jogged his memory of what happened the night before.

Peter was still asleep on his chest, hand still curled into his shirt. Tony could not help but lazily think, _Well this shirt is ruined_. He was beyond certain that being clutched in the grip of a super strong teenager probably did a number on the fabric but it was not really concern for the shirt that caused the idea to float through his mind, it was more the disquiet that came from the knowledge that Peter was frightened enough to maintain that hold throughout the night. Still that would be something to focus on later, for now it was enough that he had been able to offer some measure of comfort. Sighing quietly, Tony laid his head back against the headboard again because there was no way he was moving until the kid woke up. He knew that sleep was the best thing for Peter and he would be damned if his moving was the reason the kid lost out on any. He was awake enough not to be able to do much more than daydream but it was enough to run through a few suit modifications in his head while he waited. Sooner or later, someone would be by the check on Peter, Tony could wait.

* * *

It was not long after Tony resolved to wait that someone did come by and check on the kid. Bruce was talking to them as they walked in, his voice pulling Tony out of his daydream. Tony watched Bruce step into the room followed quickly by Strange. Squashing a groan, Tony shifted slightly under his burden, wincing as his stiff back protested.

Bruce's eyes snapped to the bed at the sound and the shocked expression on his face was hysterical, or would have been if not for the circumstances, instead Tony just smiled.

Seeing him, Bruce stuttered out, "Hey. Hey Tony."

"Hey Bruce." Then realized he should probably acknowledge Strange, "Wizard." He forced out. It was not the same angry tone as before but it still was not welcoming and he could not help the thought that he would really need to hire some more doctors. Still Strange nodded.

Stephen moved over to the machines by the bed, leaving Bruce standing awkwardly near Tony and Peter. When Strange did not initiate any conversation, Bruce looked down at Tony and whispered, "Have you been here all night?"

"Most of it." Then he amended the statement, "No wait, I've been in the room since yesterday but he woke up screaming some time during the night, I'm not sure when. I helped. He wouldn't let go," He gestured to the hand still wrapped in his shirt, "so I stayed."

Banner stared for a long second before his eyes flicked up to Strange and then back down to Tony, "I don't think it's the best thing for him to be laying like that."

The anger that Bruce had seen yesterday flashed in Tony's eyes for a moment when he answered, "What was I gonna tell him Bruce? Sorry you're terrified but the doctor thinks you should lay a different way? It'll be fine." He answered dismissively.

Bruce seemed like he wanted to say something more but Strange stepped up to the side of the bed, "Can you wake him please?"

As much as he wanted to say no, Tony knew the doctor was just doing his job. So he set about waking his kid up from his much needed sleep.

Tony shifted slightly and moved his hand onto Peter's face. Tapping his cheek gently, Tony called his name a few times. It took some effort and not a small amount of coaxing before the teenager blinked his eyes open.

When his eyes finally focused, the first thing he squeaked out through his bone dry throat was, "Tony? Waz goin' on?"

Tony tried to give him a reassuring smile, "Nothing kid. The wizard just needs to check you out. And I need to get a new shirt." He tried to joke.

Peter looked down at where his hand was still clutching the fabric of Tony's shirt and he felt his cheeks go red as he could not stop the memories of what happened the night before. Oh god, he had cried on Iron Man's shoulder. Surely, they were going to revoke his Avengers status now, none of them would have been as pathetic as he had been. But his head started to hurt as he tried to think that through and it was far too early to vocalize any of that so instead he just stammered out, "I'm sor-sorry, Mr. Stark" and pried open his hand, releasing the long suffering fabric.

"Nothing to be sorry for kid. It was just a bad joke." His eyes moved away from Peter's for a moment before glancing back, "But I apparently have to move, Strange wants to make sure you're still healing alright and I'm inclined to let him." Tony did not miss the tremble that ran through his kid as he looked at Strange and for the second time since the man had come into the room Tony felt the acidic bite of anger at the back of his tongue. He and Strange would definitely be having words just maybe not in front of the kid.

As Mr. Stark said he had to move, Peter could not help but look around the room, noticing the other current occupants. Oh god, Mr. Banner was there. The Hulk had seen him acting like a frightened child, the redness he could feel growing on his face had to have darkened. Then Tony said 'the wizard' and Peter could not help the shiver that ran down his spine when he saw Strange. In his head, he knew there was no reason why he should be nervous to see him but at the same time, he could not control the slight feeling of fear that crept into his mind. Something told him Mr. Stark noticed it too because Peter felt his arms tighten slightly before he moved them, trying to get out of the way so the doctor could do his job.

As Tony stood, Peter watched him for a few minutes while Strange checked his arm, his leg, and his ribs before moving on to the slashes across his back. Tony held his eye but stood just far enough away that Strange could move between them if he needed to. When the wizard did, Peter heard Mr. Banner's voice, "Tony, they've scheduled a debriefing today at three. It was supposed to be yesterday but…" His voice trailed off for a moment but Peter could not tell what he was doing. Then he continued, "You should be there, the Joint Chiefs are going to be involved and so will Ross."

Peter heard Tony sigh and Strange moved out of his line of sight in time to see Mr. Stark rub his hand over his face, looking more tired than Peter had seen him in a long time.

Tony was not exactly happy about the time of the debriefing but realized that if he missed it because of Peter he would really just get the kid into trouble and create more issues than Ross was worth so he huffed in frustration before answering Banner's implied question, "I'll be there. What time is it anyway?"

"About one."

"In the afternoon?" He knew it was later in the day but he did not think they had been asleep for that long.

Bruce had the utmost sincerity in his eyes when he answered, "You were both asleep, it didn't seem right to wake you."

Tony was thankful for the response but also felt a little exposed knowing that at least a few of the other Avengers had seen Peter sleeping on him. The feeling was not embarrassment. He would hit anyone who suggested he should be embarrassed for helping the kid, not that anyone would. But it was more like vulnerability, like they now knew something he was not totally ready to acknowledge, at least out loud.

"Hear that kid." Tony turned away from Bruce and looked over at Peter who was answering Strange's questions.

"What Mr. Stark?"

"I have to go." He stepped up to the bed and laid his hand on Peter's shoulder, lowering his voice as he spoke directly to him, "Apparently Ross wants to talk to us about what happened. But I'll be back."

He was making a promise without voicing it and Peter was infinitely thankful for that, he smiled up at him.

Tony could not help but smile back at Peter's attempt to thank him. It was weak compared to Peter's other smiles but it was better than the grimace he had been wearing. Tony patted his shoulder gently a couple of times before looking at Strange, "How much longer do you think he'll have to wear the casts?"

"Given how fast he heals, I would expect the cast on his arm to come off by tomorrow, the day after at the latest. His leg though was a comminuted fracture so the cast will have to stay on for at least a week."

Tony nodded carefully before asking, "What about the other injuries?"

Strange glanced back at the chart, although Tony assumed that was more to get away from his gaze than the doctor actually needing the information, and paused for a moment before answering, "The gashes on his back are mostly healed and his ribs should be healed in the next few days but they will be tender for longer."

Dropping the daggers out of his gaze, he turned back to Pete, "You'll be up and about before you know it."

Peter could hear the edge in Tony's voice when he talked to Strange and he could not help but imagine something had happened even though he could not guess at what it was. Some instinct told him it had something to do with the reaction he had when Strange walked in the room. But Tony's grounding hand on his shoulder kept him from taking that thought too far and the news of only a week was better than dead and a week did not mean in bed the whole time, just no missions. That he could live with. He smiled up at Tony as he optimistically told him it would pass quickly. Then he remembered he needed to be somewhere, "Mr. Stark, you should probably go change." He gestured at the stretched shirt.

"You're right. I just don't particularly feel like dealing with Ross right now." With that he patted Peter's shoulder one more time before striding out of the room, Bruce following him.

That left Peter and Strange alone.

* * *

The doctor that Peter had been so impressed by on Titan looked somehow smaller in the lights of the medical wing and he could not help but think there was a reason that was escaping him.

As if hearing his thoughts, Strange abruptly turned to him, "Peter." He started, before pausing and dropping his head as if looking for the right words. When he found them, he continued, "I need to apologize to you."

"To – to me? Why? You saved my life."

"Yes I helped heal your physical body but I did not anticipate the effect my actions would have on your wellbeing."

Peter felt the hairs at the back of his neck rise at the doctor's intuitiveness, "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I know you were scared, Peter. You were awake for much of what we had to do and that had to be excruciatingly painful. I also know now that having Tony here would have made it easier on you. And I feel guilty because that I am the reason he was not."

 _Oh, that's what he meant,_ Peter could not begin to comprehend how to react to this.

Thankfully, the doctor kept talking, "I just needed to let you know that I am sorry for putting you through that and that I will do everything in my power to ensure nothing like that happens again."

"Tha-thank you." Was about all Peter could get out. Then he thought of the anger he had heard in Mr. Stark's voice, "I think you might want to say something to Mr. Stark though because he seems more angry with you that I would ever be."

Strange found himself nearly laughing at the kid's response. He could not explain why but it made perfect sense that Peter had caught on to Stark's behavior. Then he did something Strange was not expecting.

Peter did not want him to leave without thanking him, he knew that he would probably be dead if Strange had not been able to help him and he wanted to make amends for the anxiety he had felt when the wizard first came in the room, so he said the only thing he could think of, "Thank you for saving me, Dr. Strange."

The half smile quirked into a full smile as he answered, "You are welcome, Peter."

* * *

Tony frowned at the stretched shirt in his grasp, damn the kid really had done a number on it. He shrugged before tossing it in the trash, he could get another shirt. Turning to head to the debriefing, he stumbled when Strange walked through the door.

Tony felt the now familiar surge of anger flare when he saw the wizard but he tried to keep a lid on it, it would not benefit any of them to start fighting, not after everything that had happened. But he could not keep the scowl off his face. He might not feel the blinding rage but he still did not like the guy. He started moving forward a bit faster with every intention of pushing passed Strange to get to the meeting, that the wizard should be going to as well by the way.

Stephen saw the expression on the man's face and truthfully he had not expected anything less, the presently healing facial fracture was enough to remind him of that. Holding his hands in front of him as a sign of surrender, he stood in front of the door, needing to say what he had told himself needed to be said, "Tony, I came to apologize."

Tony groaned when the wizard started to speak in that low, calm voice that was infinitely grating at this present time but then he said the word 'apologize'. That caught Tony off guard. He felt himself stumble internally, the hatred losing some of its intensity. He did not say anything, but he stopped moving quite so quickly to get out of the room.

"It has come to my attention that I should not have behaved the way I did yesterday when you asked for my help."

Tony cut him off, "Was that before or after I punched you in the face?" It was not his best line but it felt good to voice the anger and the twisted frown on Strange's face made it worth while. Still there was a part of Tony that realized Strange might have actually felt bad about what he had said.

Visually put off by the comment, the wizard answered anyway, "After." He snapped curtly, taking a breath before continuing, "In any case, I still feel the need to apologize for the callous way I handled Peter's injuries yesterday. I was trying to find the most efficient way to get you to stay in the fight without simply explaining my concerns and I ended up causing more problems that I solved. I did not realize the pain I would cause to either of you," Stephen did not miss the way Tony's head snapped up when he implied Peter, "and if I had I would have never asked you to choose between the fight and Peter. For that I am sorry."

"Apology accepted." Tony said hurriedly before asking about the thing he actually cared about, "Back up to what you said about pain, what did you mean when you said 'either of you'?"

Stephen had started to nod when he heard Tony accept his apology but the question threw him off. Searching for an answer that would not upset the now apparent truce between them he ultimately settled for the truth, telling Tony what he had remembered from the night before, "Peter woke up when we got him back to the compound and I did not realize it at the time because I just assumed he was moving around to try to get comfortable but later I realized he must have been looking for you while we worked on him. I heard him call your name as we were putting him under. Actually, I barely heard it at the time and it was only thinking back that I recalled it."

Tony could not hold back the sob but he managed to cover it with a kind of cough. He could feel the rage flare up again but the logical part of his brain, that had not been working yesterday, reminded him that Strange did not know, could not know what he had asked of him when he made him choose. There was no way Strange could have known that Peter would ask for him when he was scared. Still, that knowledge stung. Was that why Peter had been so upset when he had woken up? Was he still dealing with the feeling of being alone and frightened? Tony filed that away for later, yes they would definitely have to have a talk when the kid was feeling better.

Stark swallowed his pride and responded, "Thank you for telling me that and for apologizing." Then he sniffled just a bit before continuing, "I'm sort of sorry for punching you in the face."

Strange cocked his head to the side but realized this was an olive branch, "Apology accepted."

"Well," Tony clapped his hands, trying to break the now awkward tension in the room, "We should probably get to the debriefing."

* * *

When the ridiculously long meeting with Ross finished, Tony turned to head back to the kid's room when Rhodey stopped him, "How's Pete doing?"

"He'll be fine. Strange said he should be out of the leg cast in a week or so and the other injuries are healing faster." The relief on Tony's face was obvious.

Then Rhodey leaned in closer, not wanting to catch the attention as the others filtered out, chatting amongst themselves, "How are you doing?"

That question brought the haunted look back into Tony's eyes, "I'm alright," he started, unsure of where to go after that, "Its just. I…"

Rarely, did Rhodey see him at a loss for words. Still he did not press him, just stood quietly, arms folded in front of his chest while Tony tried to stammer out an explanation.

"After Titan, I just – I can't watch that again, Rhodey, I just can't and when I saw him go down yesterday…I can't get that out of my head." Tony was babbling and he knew it, there was so much he wanted to say but for some reason he just could not find the right words. He was thinking so hard about what he wanted to say that he just kind of said something, "I don't know if I want him to even fight anymore." It was a whisper but Rhodes heard it.

Immediately, he jumped on that, "You can't control that Tony. You just can't. It's his choice, it's always been his choice."

Startled at the response, Tony just stared at him before he growled, "I know." He was angry at himself for even pretending he had a say over what Peter did. "And I don't want him to stop because he makes a difference but damn if I don't just want him to be a normal kid."

"I get it. You worry about him. It's fine Tony but show it by making him suits, don't try to tell him not to do something."

"I would never actually tell him not to fight. I've tried that," he squinted his eyes as if trying to remember the number, eventually giving up he continued, "multiple times and its never worked."

Rhodey laughed at that, "And it shouldn't. He's too much like you for it to work. How many times has Pepper told you to stop?"

Feeling guilt rise up in his stomach, Tony answered, "Too many."

"Just keep being there for him, Tony. That's all you can do. That's all any of us can do for each other." He turned to walk away when he stopped and called over his shoulder, "But make sure he _knows_ that you're there for him."

Tony got the implication. And sighed at Rhodey's insight, he was shit at that, maybe it was time to actually talk to the kid. Turning toward the medical bay, Tony headed to the room he would probably be in for the foreseeable future.

* * *

When Tony walked into the dimmed room, Peter was dozing propped up with a few pillows, probably to keep his ribs in the right place while they healed. His leg was stretched back out as well, resting on a pillow at the foot of the bed. Unwilling to wake him, Tony sat a chair next to the bed and pulled out his tablet to wait until Peter woke up.

Tony was somewhere between his fifth or sixth simulation on the modifications he was working on for Pete's suit when the kid groaned his way into consciousness. Tony finished what he was working on and when he looked up, Pete was already staring at him. It was an expression he could not quite place, it was some mixture of melancholy and dejection tinged with embarrassment. That needed to change. Giving the kid a half smile, "Hey kid. How're you feeling?"

He answered with a grimace, "I'm alright. Chest still hurts a bit and my leg itches like crazy but I'm not dead." He shrugged when he said that, his voice a little too sad for Tony's liking.

"Anything I can do?" Tony asked awkwardly, inwardly groaning at himself for obviously skipping over the things he really needed to say. This was turning out to be more difficult than he had anticipated.

Peter shook his head in the negative, "No, Mr. Stark. I'm okay."

They sat in a self-conscious silence for a few minutes, both absolutely needing to say something but neither one really knowing how to put it into words. Finally Tony realized he needed to be the adult, "Look kid, we need to talk."

If Tony had predicted the look on Peter's face when he said that, he would have bit down on his tongue and never spoken again. To say he looked broken would not have been enough, even shattered was too kind a word for the look that spread across Peter's face. It shook Tony to his core, enough that he was not able to say anything for a few breaths.

Tony's freeze gave Peter enough time to start talking, blurting out everything he had been thinking about since he work up a few hours ago, "Mr. Stark, I'm sorry." Tears started to leak out of his eyes but he didn't sob, just continued, "I know I probably can't keep the suit anymore, I just – I really appreciate you taking the time to make it for me and everything. It was really awesome to be able to even do as much as I did. And I don't…"

He stopped cold when Tony held up his hand, a perturbed frown on his face, "Wait, what did you think I needed to talk to you about?"

"You're going to ask me to leave the Avengers. And I understand, Mr. St –"

"Stop. Let me make something abundantly clear, I'm not asking you to leave the Avengers. I'm not asking you to give the suit back. I'm not asking you to do anything. I wanted to apologize to you. What made you think I was going to ask you to leave the Avengers?" Tony was legitimately confused at the outburst from the kid, had he said something, done something to make him worry about this?  
"I just, after what happened last night I figured you wouldn't want someone so weak watching your back."

Tony's eyes locked on to his when he said that, a look of sheer despondency in his eyes, "Peter, there is absolutely nothing weak about what happened to you yesterday. A weak man runs at the first sign of trouble, they don't get bruised and battered and jump back into the fight to help someone else. A weak man would not have seen enough to give them the nightmares you are obviously dealing with. You are not weak and you should never apologize for needing help. That's all that happened. You needed help dealing with something and I helped you. That's it. End of story." At some point he had put his arms on Peter's shoulders, willing him to understand how deeply he believed everything he just said, "I would never ask you to leave the Avengers and I would never take the suit away from you, not again."

Peter's relief was palpable as he slumped his shoulders, it was obvious he had been worrying about this for the better part of the day. But he did not say anything so Tony continued, "I came to apologize to you for not being there when you needed me."

"But you were. I remember the fight. That thing would have squashed me if you hadn't been there."

"I would not have let that happen." Tony responded fiercely, before he took a deep breath to calm down, "I guess what I'm trying to say is that," Again with the inability to find the words he wanted when it actually mattered. Tony hung his head for just a moment, wanting to make sure he got this right. When he looked back up, it was as if he had aged ten years, "I'm glad you're alright Peter. I don't think I would be able to handle it if anything else happened to you. And I need you to know that I'm here for you if you ever need anything. And I mean anything. And, yes, that includes help with the nightmares."

Peter's cheeks went red at that comment but Tony flicked his hand before continuing, "They're nothing to be ashamed of, we all get them. Sometimes it just takes some time, and help, to get passed them but its possible."

The tears that had been leaking down Peter's face were still falling but there was a smile underneath the sniffles now, "Thanks, Mr. Stark. For everything."

"Always, kid." Tony couldn't help sitting to the bed and giving the kid a one-armed hug before he leaned over the rail and pulled his tablet off the chair and tapped on it a few times. Leaving his arm around Peter's shoulders, he pulled up the new designs he had been working on, "I was waiting for you to wake up so I could show you some of these."

Peter's smile widened at the new designs, and Tony could not help but be swept up in the kid's renewed enthusiasm. They spent the rest of the day reworking aspects of the suit and discussing changes until Peter started to nod off, his head falling to rest on Tony's shoulder.

"I think its time to get some sleep Pete."

"Okay," he mumbled, only squinting his eyes open. As Tony turned to help him lay down, careful to keep him mostly upright against the pillows. Putting one leg off the bed, Tony stopped when Peter grabbed his hand, "Mr. Stark, will you stay here just one more night? I jus – I don't want to wake up alone."

That twisted Tony's heart, the insecurity in his tone was enough to make Tony want to shake him. Instead he settled on proving he was not going to break his promise, "Of course, Peter." The kid gave him a bright smile of thanks and Tony could not help hugging him once more before getting off the bed. Settling to the chair, Tony watched as the kid drifted off into what he had hoped were quieter dreams before getting himself comfortable. As he started to drift off, he felt content, secure for the first time in a long time. They were not fine, not by a long shot, but they were getting there and Tony swore to himself that nothing would ever break the promise he had made to his kid.


End file.
